Updated: FSIS Provides Guidance for Listeria Sampling Programs in Ready-to-Eat Meat and Poultry ProductsMonday, September 24, 2012
(American Meat Institute)
USDA Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) announced changes it will make in its procedures for Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) product sampling programs in ready-to-eat meat and poultry products.
The agency will increase the number of product samples it collects under its routine Risk-based Lm (RLm) sampling program and its intensified verification testing protocol from three to five samples per sampling unit. In addition, FSIS laboratories will composite the five 25-g product samples from the RLm sampling program, which will increase the sample size of the analyzed test portion from 25 g to 125 g. Intensified Verification Testing (IVT) sample size will be five-25 g samples and since these samples are investigative they will not be composited. This will make sampling procedures more consistent with international practices and conserve laboratory resources. Routine monitoring sample sizes for test codes RTE001 and ALLRTE will not change.
The new changes have been published in the Federal Register: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-09-24/html/2012-23462.htm
Comments are due by November 23, 2012.
share on facebook share on twitter